for paid apps, it's because iOS users are more willing to pay real money when compared to Android users. As for free apps, I suppose it's more complicated. For a small team of 1 dev, if that dev has iOS, then that's what they'll build first.

I don't build mobile apps, but I hear generally people prefer building for iOS. Plus, they can use the latest APIs and not worry about supporting a 6 year old OS.

Imagine testing your iOS app. You get a small number of iPhones and you're done. Now compare to Android.

I'm an Android user who constantly wonders whether he shouldn't give up and switch to iOS.

The people who use HN frequently are startup fiends, and Apple is an expert at extracting value from their users. The rest of the story writes itself.